Methods and apparatuses for power saving operations

ABSTRACT

A method for a UE for performing a dormant operation is provided. The method includes receiving, from a BS, an RRC configuration indicating a set of one or more dormancy cell groups, wherein a group of serving cells belongs to a specific dormancy cell group in the set of one or more dormancy cell groups; receiving, from the BS, a signal including a bitmap, each bit of the bitmap being associated with a respective dormancy cell group in the set of one or more dormancy cell groups; and switching, based on a bit in the bitmap that is associated with the specific dormancy cell group, active BWPs of all serving cells included in the group of serving cells to a dormant BWP or to a non-dormant BWP.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

The present application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 17/033,125, filed on Sep. 25, 2020, entitled“METHODS AND APPARATUSES FOR POWER SAVING OPERATIONS,” which claims thebenefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.62/909,965, filed on Oct. 3, 2019, entitled “Method and apparatus forpower saving signal.” The contents of all of the above-namedapplications are hereby fully incorporated herein by reference for allpurposes.

FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to wireless communications and,more specifically, to methods and apparatuses for power savingoperations (e.g., dormant operations).

BACKGROUND

With the tremendous growth in the number of connected devices and therapid increase in user/network traffic volume, various efforts have beenmade to improve different aspects of wireless communication for thenext-generation wireless communication system, such as thefifth-generation (5G) New Radio (NR), by improving data rate, latency,reliability, and mobility.

The 5G NR system is designed to provide flexibility and configurabilityto optimize the network services and types, accommodating various usecases such as enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), massive Machine-TypeCommunication (mMTC), and Ultra-Reliable and Low-Latency Communication(URLLC).

However, as the demand for radio access continues to increase, there isa need for further improvements in wireless communication for thenext-generation wireless communication system.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is directed to methods and apparatuses for powersaving operations.

According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a methodperformed by a User Equipment (UE) for power saving operations isprovided. The method includes the UE receiving a first Radio ResourceControl (RRC) configuration indicating at least one dormancy cell group,and receiving a second RRC configuration indicating a first BandwidthPart (BWP) (on which the UE is configured with a dormant operation), fora serving cell. The dormant operation includes the UE performing aChannel State Information (CSI) measurement and stopping monitoring aPhysical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH). The serving cell belongs to adormancy cell group of the at least one dormancy cell group. The methodfurther includes the LIE receiving a third RRC configuration indicatinga second BWP, on which the UE is not configured with the dormantoperation, for the serving cell, receiving a Power Saving Signal (PSS)including a bitmap. Each bit in the bitmap is associated with one of theat least one dormancy cell group. The method further includesdetermining an active BWP of the serving cell as the first BWP afterdetermining that a bit associated with the dormancy cell group in thebitmap is set to a first value, and determining the active BWP of theserving cell as the second BWP after determining that the bit is set toa second value.

According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a UE for powersaving operations is provided. The UE includes a memory and at least oneprocessor coupled to the memory. The at least one processor isconfigured to receive a first RRC configuration indicating at least onedormancy cell group, and receive a second RRC configuration indicating afirst BWP (on which the UE is configured with a dormant operation) for aserving cell. The dormant operation includes the UE performing a CSImeasurement and stopping monitoring a PDCCH. The serving cell belongs toa dormancy cell group of the at least one dormancy cell group. The atleast one processor is further configured to receive a third RRCconfiguration indicating a second BWP (on which the UE is not configuredwith the dormant operation) for the serving cell, receive a PSSincluding a bitmap. Each bit in the bitmap is associated with one of theat least one dormancy cell group. The at least one processor is furtherconfigured to determine an active BWP of the serving cell as the firstBWP after determining that a bit associated with the dormancy cell groupin the bitmap is set to a first value, and determine the active BWP ofthe serving cell as the second BWP after determining that the bit is setto a second value.

According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, a method for aUser Equipment (UE) for performing a dormant operation is provided. Themethod includes receiving, from a Base Station (BS), a Radio ResourceControl (RRC) configuration indicating a set of one or more dormancycell groups, wherein a group of serving cells belongs to a specificdormancy cell group in the set of one or more dormancy cell groups;receiving, from the BS, a signal including a bitmap, each bit of thebitmap being associated with a respective dormancy cell group in the setof one or more dormancy cell groups; and switching, based on a bit inthe bitmap that is associated with the specific dormancy cell group,active Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) of all serving cells included in the groupof serving cells to a dormant BWP or to a non-dormant BWP.

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the method further includes performing the dormant operation on aspecific serving cell included in the group of serving cells in a casethat the active BWP of the specific serving cell is the dormant BWP.

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the dormant operation includes performing a Channel State Information(CSI) measurement; and forgoing monitoring a Physical Downlink ControlChannel (PDCCH).

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the dormant operation includes at least one of performing Automatic GainControl (AGC) for a specific serving cell included in the group ofserving cells, or performing beam management for the specific servingcell.

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the method further includes forgoing monitoring a Physical DownlinkControl Channel (PDCCH) on a specific serving cell included in the groupof serving cells in a case that the active BWP of the specific servingcell is the dormant BWP; and monitoring the PDCCH on the specificserving cell in a case that the active BWP of the specific serving cellis the non-dormant BWP.

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the signal is received via Downlink Control Information (DCI) that isscrambled by a Power Saving-Radio Network Temporary Identifier(PS-RNTI).

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the signal further includes a wake-up indicator for starting aDiscontinuous Reception (DRX) On-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer) ata beginning of a DRX cycle.

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the method further includes receiving a configuration of a DiscontinuousReception (DRX) operation from the BS.

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the method further includes forgoing monitoring the signal on a PhysicalDownlink Control Channel (PDCCH) monitoring occasion when the UE is in aDiscontinuous Reception (DRX) active time, wherein the PDCCH monitoringoccasion is configured for the signal; and monitoring the signal on thePDCCH monitoring occasion when the UE is not in the DRX active time.

In some implementations of the third aspect of the present disclosure,the active BWP of a specific serving cell included in the group ofserving cells is a Downlink (DL) BWP.

According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, a User Equipment(UE) for performing a dormant operation is provided. The UE includestransmitting and receiving circuitry and at least one processor coupledto the transmitting and receiving circuitry. The at least one processoris configured to receive, by the transmitting and receiving circuitry, aRadio Resource Control (RRC) configuration indicating a set of one ormore dormancy cell groups from a Base Station (BS), wherein a group ofserving cells belongs to a specific dormancy cell group in the set ofone or more dormancy cell groups; receive, by the transmitting andreceiving circuitry, a signal including a bitmap from the BS, each bitof the bitmap being associated with a respective dormancy cell group inthe set of one or more dormancy cell groups; and switch, based on a bitin the bitmap that is associated with the specific dormancy cell group,active Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) of all serving cells included in the groupof serving cells to a dormant BWP or to a non-dormant BWP.

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the at least one processor is further configured to perform the dormantoperation on a specific serving cell included in the group of servingcells in a case that the active BWP of the specific serving cell is thedormant BWP.

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the dormant operation includes performing a Channel State Information(CSI) measurement; and forgoing monitoring a Physical Downlink ControlChannel (PDCCH).

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the dormant operation includes at least one of: performing AutomaticGain Control (AGC) for a specific serving cell included in the group ofserving cells, or performing beam management for the specific servingcell.

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the at least one processor is further configured to forgo monitoring aPhysical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) on a specific serving cellincluded in the group of serving cells in a case that the active BWP ofthe specific serving cell is the dormant BWP; and monitor the PDCCH onthe specific serving cell in a case that the active BWP of the specificserving cell is the non-dormant BWP.

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the signal is received via Downlink Control Information (DCI) that isscrambled by a Power Saving-Radio Network Temporary Identifier(PS-RNTI).

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the signal further includes a wake-up indicator for starting aDiscontinuous Reception (DRX) On-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer) ata beginning of a DRX cycle.

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the at least one processor is further configured to receive, by thetransmitting and receiving circuitry, a configuration of a DiscontinuousReception (DRX) operation from the BS.

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the at least one processor is further configured to forgo monitoring thesignal on a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) monitoringoccasion when the UE is in a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) active time,wherein the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured for the signal; andmonitor the signal on the PDCCH monitoring occasion when the UE is notin the DRX active time.

In some implementations of the fourth aspect of the present disclosure,the active BWP of a specific serving cell included in the group ofserving cells is a Downlink (DL) BWP.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Aspects of the present disclosure are best understood from the followingdetailed disclosure when read with the accompanying figures. Variousfeatures are not drawn to scale. Dimensions of various features may bearbitrarily increased or reduced for clarity of discussion.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a PSS scheme in accordance with animplementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of the adaptation of the maximum number ofantennas and/or Multi-Input Multi-Output (MIMO) layers, in accordancewith an implementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates the timing of starting or restarting thebwp-InactivityTimer, according to an implementation of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a process of a UE not monitoring a PSSin the Discontinuous Reception (DRX) active time, in accordance with animplementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a DRX cycle in accordance with animplementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart for a method performed by a UE for powersaving operations, in accordance with an implementation of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart for another method performed by a UE forpower saving operations, in accordance with an implementation of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a process of controlling the dormantoperation of each dormancy cell group through a PSS, in accordance withan implementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of a node for wireless communication,in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

DESCRIPTION

Terms mentioned in the present disclosure are illustrated as follows.Unless otherwise specified, the terms in the present disclosure have thefollowing meanings.

Abbreviation Full name 3GPP 3^(rd) Generation Partnership Project 5G5^(th) generation ACK Acknowledgement AGC Automatic Gain Control BABandwidth Adaptation BWP Band Width Part CA Carrier Aggregation CCComponent Carrier CE Control Element CG Cell Group CORESET ControlResource Set CSI Channel State Information CSI-RS Channel StateInformation based Reference Signal CQI Channel Quality Information DCDual Connectivity DCI Downlink Control Information DL Downlink DRXDiscontinuous Reception FR Frequency Range IE Information Element MACMedium Access Control MCG Master Cell Group MIMO Multi-InputMulti-Output NACK Negative Acknowledgement NR New RAT/Radio NW NetworkPCell Primary Cell PSCell Primary Secondary Cell PSS Power SavingSignal/Channel PS-RNTI Power Saving Radio Network Temporary IdentifierPDCCH Physical Downlink Control Channel PDCP Packet Data ConvergenceProtocol PDSCH Physical Downlink Shared Channel PDU Protocol Data UnitPHY Physical PRACH Physical Random Access Channel PUCCH Physical UplinkControl Channel PUSCH Physical Uplink Shared Channel PTAG Primary TimingAdvanced Group RA Random Access RLC Radio Link Control RNTI RadioNetwork Temporary Identifier RRC Radio Resource Control RS ReferenceSignal RF Radio Frequency SCell Secondary Cell SCG Secondary Cell GroupSCS Sub-Carrier Spacing SDAP Service Data Adaptation Protocol SFN SystemFrame Number WUS Wake Up Signaling SINR Signal to Interference plusNoise Ratio SpCell Special Cell SR Scheduling Request SRS SoundingReference Signal TRP Transmission/Reception Point TS TechnicalSpecification UE User Equipment UL Uplink UL-SCH Uplink Shared ChannelWUS Wake Up Signal

The following disclosure contains specific information pertaining toexample implementations in the present disclosure. The drawings in thepresent disclosure and their accompanying detailed disclosure aredirected to merely example implementations. However, the presentdisclosure is not limited to merely these example implementations. Othervariations and implementations of the present disclosure will occur tothose skilled in the art. Unless noted otherwise, like or correspondingelements among the figures may be indicated by like or correspondingreference numerals. Moreover, the drawings and illustrations in thepresent disclosure are generally not to scale and are not intended tocorrespond to actual relative dimensions.

For consistency and ease of understanding, like features are identified(although, in some examples, not illustrated) by numerals in the examplefigures. However, the features in different implementations may differin other respects, and thus shall not be narrowly confined to what isillustrated in the figures.

References to “one implementation,” “an implementation,” “exampleimplementation,” “various implementations,” “some implementations,”“implementations of the present disclosure,” etc., may indicate that theimplementation(s) of the present disclosure so described may include aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic, but not every possibleimplementation of the present disclosure necessarily includes theparticular feature, structure, or characteristic. Further, repeated useof the phrase “in one implementation,” “in an example implementation,”or “an implementation,” do not necessarily refer to the sameimplementation, although they may. Moreover, any use of phrases like“implementations” in connection with “the present disclosure” are nevermeant to characterize that all implementations of the present disclosuremust include the particular feature, structure, or characteristic, andshould instead be understood to mean “at least some implementations ofthe present disclosure” includes the stated particular feature,structure, or characteristic. The term “coupled” is defined asconnected, whether directly or indirectly through interveningcomponents, and is not necessarily limited to physical connections. Theterm “comprising,” when utilized, means “including but not necessarilylimited to”; it specifically indicates open-ended inclusion ormembership in the so-described combination, group, series, and theequivalent. Besides, the terms “system” and “network” described in thepresent disclosure may be used interchangeably.

The term “and/or” herein is only an association relationship fordescribing associated objects and represents that three relationshipsmay exist, for example, A and/or B may represent that: A exists alone, Aand B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. “A and/or B and/or C”may represent that at least one of A, B, and C exists. Besides, thecharacter “/” used herein generally represents that the former andlatter associated objects are in an “or” relationship.

Additionally, for a non-limiting explanation, specific details, such asfunctional entities, techniques, protocols, standards, and the like, areset forth for providing an understanding of the described technology. Inother examples, a detailed disclosure of well-known methods,technologies, systems, architectures, and the like are omitted so as notto obscure the present disclosure with unnecessary details.

Persons skilled in the art will immediately recognize that any networkfunction(s) or algorithm(s) described in the present disclosure may beimplemented by hardware, software, or a combination of software andhardware. Described functions may correspond to modules that may besoftware, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. The softwareimplementation may comprise computer-executable instructions stored on acomputer-readable medium such as memory or other types of storagedevices. For example, one or more microprocessors or general-purposecomputers with communication processing capability may be programmedwith corresponding executable instructions and carry out the describednetwork function(s) or algorithm(s). The microprocessors orgeneral-purpose computers may be formed of Application-SpecificIntegrated Circuits (ASICs), programmable logic arrays, and/or using oneor more Digital Signal Processors (DSPs). Although some of the exampleimplementations described in this specification are oriented to softwareinstalled and executing on computer hardware, alternative exampleimplementations implemented as firmware, as hardware, or as acombination of hardware and software are well within the scope of thepresent disclosure.

The computer-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, RandomAccess Memory (RAM), Read-Only Memory (ROM), Erasable ProgrammableRead-Only Memory (EPROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-OnlyMemory (EEPROM), flash memory, Compact Disc Read-Only Memory (CD-ROM),magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage, or any otherequivalent medium capable of storing computer-readable instructions.

A radio communication network architecture (e.g., a Long-Term Evolution(LTE) system, an LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) system, or an LTE-Advanced Prosystem) may typically include at least one Base Station (BS), at leastone UE, and one or more optional network elements that provideconnection towards a network. The UE may communicate with the network(e.g., a Core Network (CN), an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network, anEvolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), aNext-Generation Core (NGC), or an Internet), through a Radio AccessNetwork (RAN) established by the BS.

It should be noted that, in the present disclosure, a UE may include,but is not limited to, a mobile station, a mobile terminal or device, ora user communication radio terminal. For example, a UE may be a portableradio equipment, which includes, but is not limited to, a mobile phone,a tablet, a wearable device, a sensor, or a Personal Digital Assistant(PDA) with wireless communication capability. The UE may be configuredto receive and transmit signals over an air interface to one or morecells in a RAN.

A BS may include, but is not limited to, a Node B (NB) as in theUniversal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS), an evolved Node B(eNB) as in the LTE-A, a Radio Network Controller (RNC) as in the UMTS,a Base Station Controller (BSC) as in the Global System for Mobilecommunications (GSM)/GSM Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE)Radio Access Network (GERAN), a next-generation eNB (ng-eNB) as in anEvolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) BS in connectionwith the 5GC, a next-generation Node B (gNB) as in the 5G Access Network(5G-AN), and any other apparatus capable of controlling radiocommunication and managing radio resources within a cell. The BS mayconnect to serve the one or more UEs through a radio interface to thenetwork.

A BS may be configured to provide communication services according to atleast one of the following Radio Access Technologies (RATs): WorldwideInteroperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), GSM (often referred to as2G), GERAN, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), UMTS (often referred toas 3G) based on basic Wideband-Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA),High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA), LTE, LTE-A, enhanced LTE (eLTE), NR(often referred to as 5G), and LTE-A Pro. However, the scope of thepresent disclosure should not be limited to the protocols mentionedabove.

The BS may be operable to provide radio coverage to a specificgeographical area using a plurality of cells included in the RAN. The BSmay support the operations of the cells. Each cell may be operable toprovide services to at least one UE within its radio coverage. Morespecifically, each cell (often referred to as a serving cell) mayprovide services to serve one or more UEs within its radio coverage(e.g., each cell schedules the Downlink (DL) and optionally Uplink (UL)resources to at least one UE within its radio coverage for DL andoptionally UL packet transmissions). The BS may communicate with one ormore UEs in the radio communication system through the plurality ofcells. A cell may allocate Sidelink (SL) resources for supportingProximity Service (ProSe), LTE SL services, and LTE/NRVehicle-to-Everything (V2X) services. Each cell may have overlappedcoverage areas with other cells. In Multi-RAT Dual Connectivity (MR-DC)cases, the primary cell of a Master Cell Group (MCG) or a Secondary CellGroup (SCG) may be called as a Special Cell (SpCell). A Primary Cell(PCell) may refer to the SpCell of an MCG. A Primary SCG Cell (PSCell)may refer to the SpCell of an SCG. MCG may refer to a group of servingcells associated with the Master Node (MN), comprising the SpCell andoptionally one or more Secondary Cells (SCells). An SCG may refer to agroup of serving cells associated with the Secondary Node (SN),comprising of the SpCell and optionally one or more SCells.

As discussed above, the frame structure for NR is to support flexibleconfigurations for accommodating various next-generation (e.g., 5G)communication requirements, such as eMBB, mMTC, and URLLC, whilefulfilling high reliability, high data rate, and low latencyrequirements. The orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM)technology, as agreed in the 3GPP, may serve as a baseline for an NRwaveform. The scalable OFDM numerology, such as the adaptive sub-carrierspacing, the channel bandwidth, and the cyclic prefix (CP), may also beused. Additionally, two coding schemes are considered for NR: (1)low-density parity-check (LDPC) code and (2) polar code. The codingscheme adaption may be configured based on the channel conditions and/orthe service applications.

Moreover, it is also considered that in a transmission time interval ofa single NR frame, at least DL transmission data, a guard period, and ULtransmission data should be included, where the respective portions ofthe DL transmission data, the guard period, and the UL transmission datashould also be configurable, for example, based on the network dynamicsof NR. Besides, an SL resource may also be provided in an NR frame tosupport ProSe services.

UE battery life may strongly affect the user's experience and influencethe adoption of 5G NR handsets and/or services. The power efficiency for5G NR UE(s) can be better than that for LTE UE(s), and techniques anddesigns for improvements have been identified and adopted. For example,techniques such as UE adaptation in Frequency (e.g., BWP and/or CA/DC),UE adaptation in Time (e.g., PSS mechanism), and/or UE adaptation intraffic (e.g., dynamic maximum MIMO layer configuration) are provided toimprove UE's power efficiency.

UE BWP adaptation or Bandwidth Adaptation (BA) may refer to a procedurethat a BS (e.g., gNB) may dynamically switch the UE's active (DL/UL) BWPbased on the traffic to support efficient operations of BWP switching(or “BWP switch”), thereby reducing the UE's power consumption. Toenable BA on a PCell, the gNB may configure the UE with UL BWP(s) and DLBWP(s). To enable BA on SCells under CA, the gNB may at least configurethe UE with DL BWP(s) (e.g., there may be no UL BWP(s)). For a PCell,the initial BWP may be the BWP used for initial access. For an SCell,the initial BWP may be the BWP configured for the UE to first operate atSCell activation. With BA, the reception and transmission bandwidth of aUE does not need to be as large as the bandwidth of the cell and can beadjusted. For example, the bandwidth may be ordered to change (e.g., toshrink during the period of low activity to save power), the location ofthe bandwidth may be adjusted in the frequency domain (e.g., to increasescheduling flexibility), and the subcarrier spacing may be ordered tochange (e.g., to allow different services). A subset of the total cellbandwidth of a cell may refer to a BWP. BA may be achieved byconfiguring a UE with one or more BWPs and notifying the UE which of theconfigured BWPs is currently active. A UE configured to operate in theBWPs of a serving cell may be configured with a set of BWPs for DLreceptions (e.g., a DL BWP set), e.g., by a parameter BWP-Downlink(e.g., specified in the 3GPP TS 38.331 V15.5.5.0); the UE may also beconfigured with a set of BWPs for UL transmissions (e.g., a UL BWP set),e.g., by parameter BWP-Uplink.

BWP switch for a serving cell may refer to a procedure used to activatean inactive BWP and deactivate an active BWP at a time. BWP switch maybe controlled by a PDCCH (e.g., indicating a DL assignment or an ULgrant), a BWP inactivity timer (bwp-InactivityTimer), RRC signaling, orthe MAC entity (upon the initiation of an RA procedure). Upon the RRC(re-)configuration of firstActiveDownlinkBWP-Id and/orfirstActiveUplinkBWP-Id for an SpCell or the activation of an SCell, theDL BWP and UL BWP indicated byfirstActiveDownlinkBWP-IdandfirstActiveUplinkBWP-Id, respectively, may become active even if aPDCCH indicating a DL assignment or an UL grant is not received. Theactive BWP for a serving cell may be indicated by RRC signaling or aPDCCH. For the unpaired spectrum, a DL BWP may be paired with a UL BWP.BWP switch may be common for both UL and DL transmissions.

UE adaptation to CA may allow a BS (e.g., a gNB) to rapidlyactivate/deactivate an SCell based on the traffic, in order to supportefficient operations for fast SCell activation/deactivation and achieveUE power saving. In CA, two or more CCs are aggregated. A UE maysimultaneously receive or transmit on one or multiple CCs depending uponthe UE's capability. CA may support both contiguous and non-contiguousCCs. When CA is deployed, frame timing and SFN may be aligned across thecells that can be aggregated. To enable reasonable UE batteryconsumption when CA is configured, the activation/deactivation mechanismof cells is provided. When an SCell is deactivated, the UE does not needto monitor the PDCCH(s) or PDSCH(s) corresponding to the deactivatedSCell and does not perform UL transmissions corresponding to thedeactivated SCell. In addition, the UE may not need to perform CQImeasurements. Conversely, when an SCell is activated, the UE may need tomonitor the corresponding PDSCH(s) and PDCCH(s) (if the UE is configuredto monitor PDCCH on this SCell) and is expected to be able to performCQI measurements on the SCell.

The UE power saving schemes with UE adaptation to the traffic may beused to reduce the maximum number of antenna/panels or MIMO layerssemi-statically or dynamically indicated by the NW to achieve thepurpose of UE power saving. The NW may indicate the maximum MIMO layerto be used for PDSCH and/or PUSCH transmissions in all BWPs of a servingcell. Based on the maximum number of MIMO layers (denoted as L_(max)), aUE can activate/deactivate its antenna-related elements to reduce thepower consumption. For example, the UE may activate the smallest numberof the antenna-related elements that is enough to receive the L_(max)MIMO layers. The antenna-related elements may refer to a set ofcomponents including RF chain(s), RF path(s) (mixer(s), poweramplifier(s), phase shifter(s), etc.), panel(s), physical antennaelements(s), etc. The set of components may be turned on/off based on UEimplementation, and therefore, the impact from the antenna adaptationcan be different for each UE.

For UE adaptation in the time domain, a UE may be configured with a DRXoperation that controls the UE's PDCCH monitoring activity. With the DRXoperation, the UE may monitor PDCCH(s) according to specificrequirements (e.g., specified in the 3GPP TS 38.321 V15.5.0). Whenoperating in the RRC_CONNECTED state and if the DRX operation isconfigured, for all the activated serving cells, the UE may monitor thePDCCH discontinuously during the DRX operation; otherwise, the UE maymonitor the PDCCH in a normal way (e.g., specified in the 3GPP TS 38.213V15.5.0).

PSS/WUS Mechanism

A PSS may include a WUS indication (e.g., a wake-up indicator). The PSSmay trigger a UE (or the MAC entity of the UE) to “wake up” to monitor aPDCCH for the next occurrence of the DRX On-duration (e.g., to startdrx-onDuration Timer). The PSS may be configured jointly with DRXoperation. For example, the PSS may be configured only when the DRXoperation is configured.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a PSS scheme in accordance with animplementation of the present disclosure. As illustrated in FIG. 1 , thePSS may be monitored at the occasion(s) (e.g., the PSS monitoringoccasion 102 and/or 106) located at a configured offset before the startof a timer (e.g., drx-onDurationTimer). On the PSS monitoring occasion102 and/or 106 that a UE receives the PSS, if the UE is indicated towake up (e.g., to monitor the PDCCH) on a DRX cycle by a wake-upindicator included in the PSS, the UE may start the drx-onDurationTimerat the beginning of the DRX cycle. Otherwise, the UE may not start thedrx-onDurationTimer at the beginning of the DRX cycle. For example, oncethe UE receives the PSS, the PHY layer 112 of the UE may provide awake-up indicator to the MAC entity 114 of the UE. Then the UE (or MACentity 114) may start the timer (e.g., drx-onDurationTimer) at thebeginning of an associated DRX cycle. If the PHY layer 112 does notprovide a wake-up indicator to the MAC entity 114, the UE (or MAC entity114) may not start the timer (e.g., drx-onDurationTimer) at thebeginning of the associated DRX cycle.

In one implementation, if the UE monitors the PSS monitoring occasion102 and the PSS is detected (and/or the wake-up indicator of the PSSindicates to the UE to wake up), the UE may start thedrx-onDurationTimer at the beginning of the subsequent DRX cycle (e.g.,at the beginning of the DRX On-duration 104). On the other hand, if theUE monitors a PSS monitoring occasion (e.g., the PSS monitoring occasion106) but no PSS is detected (and/or the PSS indicates to the UE not towake up), the UE may not start the timer (e.g., drx-onDurationTimer) atthe beginning of the subsequent DRX cycle. Besides, the UE may notmonitor the PSS during the DRX active time 110. That is, the UE may onlymonitor the PSS outside the DRX active time 110. If the UE is in the DRXactive time during a PSS monitoring occasion, the UE may start thedrx-onDurationTimer at its next occasion.

In one implementation, the PSS may (only) be configured on the PCell incase of CA and the SpCell in case of DC (e.g., the PCell in an MCG and aPSCell in an SCG). A new (UE-specific) RNTI (e.g., PS-RNTI) may beintroduced for PSS decoding. A UE-specific configuration of the searchspace set(s) may be dedicated to the PSS for the UE to monitor. TheCORESET for the PSS may be configured with the same or differentCORESET(s) configured for other PDCCH monitoring. One or more than onemonitoring occasions may be configured an offset (e.g., a slot ormultiple slots) before the DRX On-duration or DRX cycle. UE may (only)monitor the PSS on the active (DL) BWP in an active cell.

MIMO Layer Adaptation

In the 3GPP release 15, the maximum number of MIMO layers (which may bedenoted as L_(max)) may be configured per a cell basis by higher layersignaling (by PDSCH-ServingCellConfig for DL and PUSCH-ServingCellConfigfor UL). The indicated maximum number of MIMO layers may be used forPDSCH/PUSCH transmissions in all BWPs of the serving cell. Dynamicantenna adaptation (based on UE implementation) may still be supportableeven if L_(max) is a per-cell configuration. However, configuringL_(max) on a cell basis may be an inefficient way when there is no orless traffic. For example, if a UE is configured with multiple BWPs andthe bwp-InactivityTimer expires due to no traffic, the UE may switch itsactive BWP to a default BWP (e.g., a narrow BWP). However, the UE maystill need to activate its antennas based on the per-cell configuredL_(max), even if the UE has operated in the default BWP. In view ofthis, if the default BWP can be configured with different values ofL_(max), the gNB may configure a smaller L_(max) value for the defaultBWP, so that the UE can deactivate one or more antennas when the defaultBWP is activated, thereby reducing the UE's power consumption. Forexample, L_(max) may be configured per a BWP basis. The gNB may instructa UE to switch its BWP dynamically for antenna adaptation. In thissituation, the maximum number of MIMO layers, L_(max), may be configuredper a BWP basis, and the UE may use this per-BWP configured L_(max)value and ignore the per-cell configured L_(max) value (e.g., providedin the PDSCH-ServingCellConfig IE and/or PUSCH-ServingCellConfig IE)when operating in the (default) BWP. If the maximum number of MIMOlayers is not configured for a BWP, the UE may turn to use the per-cellconfigured L_(max) value when operating in the BWP.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of the adaptation of the maximum number ofantennas and/or MIMO layers, in accordance with an implementation of thepresent disclosure. In the present implementation, the maximum number ofMIMO layers, L_(max), can be separately configured for each BWP. Asillustrated in FIG. 2 , the L_(max) is 2 for the BWP #1 202 and is 4 forthe BWP #2 204. Thus, compared to operating in the BWP #2 204, the UE222 can activate fewer antennas (e.g., only two of four receive antennasare activated) when operating in the BWP #1 202. In this way, the powerconsumption of the UE 222 can be dynamically adjusted through a BWPswitch.

As described above, configuring the maximum number of MIMO layers on aBWP basis may reduce UE's power consumption. In order to change themaximum number of MIMO layers, the NW may indicate the BWP switch forthe UE to change the BWP and the maximum number of MIMO layersassociated with the target BWP. For example, scheduling DCI (and/orPDCCH) may be used for the BWP switch during the DRX active time.However, a time gap/delay (e.g., T_(ant)) for an antenna switch (e.g.,the activation/deactivation of one or more antennas) may be required atthe UE side. Therefore, if a UE changes its active BWP and antennastogether, the time gap/delay T_(ant) for the antenna switch may berequired in addition to the BWP switch delay (e.g., T_(bwp)). On theother hand, the adaptation of the maximum number of MIMO layers may leadto data interruption. Additionally, the number of affected slots maybecome larger as SCS is increased, reducing in a reduction of thescheduling flexibility. Thus, in some implementations, a method ofperforming the adaptation of the maximum number of MIMO layers (and/orBWPs) before a DRX On-duration and/or DRX cycle or outside the DRXactive time may be applied. When a BWP switch takes place before a DRXOn-duration, data interruption or possible time delay due to the BWPswitch and/or antenna switch can be avoided or alleviated because theBWP switch has finished before data scheduling. In one implementation,the method can be achieved by including a BWP index in the PSS (and/orthe WUS). In this way, the PSS may be used to indicate the BWP switch.Other implementations may be described in the following.

The following cases describe UE operations performed based on PSS(s).

Case #1: Switch BWP(s) of One or Multiple Serving Cells Via PSS

In one implementation, a PSS may be configured only on a PCell (in caseof CA) and/or an SpCell (in case of DC), where the SpCell may be a PCellin an MCG or a PSCell in an SCG. In other words, the PSS may not beconfigured on the SCell(s). Thus, the UE may only receive the PSS on aPCell or an SpCell from the NW, and may not receive the PSS on theSCell(s) from the NW.

A serving cell may be configured with one or multiple BWPs, and thecorresponding BWP operation (e.g., BWP switch and/or BWP-related timeroperations) may be controlled per serving cell. Methods of using a PSSto switch the BWP(s) of one or multiple or all serving cells isprovided.

A UE may perform a BWP switch on a serving cell(s) if the UE receives aPSS (e.g., on an SpCell).

In one implementation, the PSS may switch only the BWP of an SpCell(e.g., a PCell or a PSCell). For example, the PSS may be configured onlyon the SpCell. In this situation, the UE may only monitor the PSS on theSpCell and not monitor the PSS on the SCell(s). If the UE receives a PSSon the SpCell, and the PSS instructs the UE to switch the BWP, the UEmay switch only the BWP of the SpCell and may not switch the BWP of theSCell(s). In addition, the UE may start or restart a timer (e.g.,bwp-InactivityTimer) only for the SpCell and may not start or restartthe timer for the SCell(s). The PSS may not include the SCell-relatedinformation (e.g., SCell ID), and therefore, the PSS may not instructthe UE to perform a BWP switch for other SCell(s).

In one implementation, PSS can indicate a BWP switch of a specificserving cell(s). For example, the PSS may indicate a BWP switch on eachserving cell (or all the serving cells). The PSS may be configured onlyon the SpCell. The UE may monitor the PSS only on the SpCell, and the UEmay not monitor the PSS on the SCell(s). If the UE receives a PSS on theSpCell, and the PSS indicates to the UE to switch the BWP, the UE mayswitch the BWP of each (activated) serving cell(s). The UE may switchthe BWP of different (activated) serving cell(s) to a specific BWP. TheUE may switch the BWP of different (activated) serving cell(s) todifferent BWPs. The specific BWP may be determined based on thedisclosed implementations. The UE may switch the BWP of each (activated)serving cell(s) to a specific BWP indicated by the PSS. The UE mayswitch the BWP of each (activated) serving cell(s) to a BWP, wherein theBWP may be pre-configured by RRC signaling. In another example, the PSSmay indicate a BWP switch on a group of serving cells. The group(s) ofthe serving cell(s) may be configured by the NW (e.g., via RRCsignaling, MAC CE, etc.). The number of cell(s) in a group may be zero,one, or more than one.

For example, the NW may configure a group of the serving cell(s) for aUE. If the UE receives the PSS (e.g., on the SpCell) that indicates aBWP switch of the group of the serving cell(s), the UE may switch theBWP(s) of all the (activated) serving cell(s) included in the group ofthe serving cell(s) to a specific BWP. The specific BWP may bepreconfigured by the NW and/or predefined in the 3GPP specification(e.g., default/initial BWP). Alternatively, the UE may switch the BWP(s)of all the (activated) serving cell (s) included in the group of theserving cell(s) to different BWPs. The NW may preconfigure differentBWPs for each serving cell. For example, the NW may configure a BWP #1to a serving cell #1, and the NW may configure a BWP #2 to a servingcell #2, wherein the cell #1 and the cell #2 are configured in the samegroup. If the UE receives the PSS that indicates a BWP switch of thegroup of the serving cell(s), the UE may switch the BWP of the servingcell #1 to the BWP #1 and may switch the BWP of the serving cell #2 tothe BWP #2.

For example, the NW may configure two groups of the serving cell(s) fora UE. A first group of the serving cell(s) may include an SCell #1 andan SCell #2, and a second group of the serving cell(s) may include anSCell #3 and an SCell #4. If the UE receives the PSS (e.g., on theSpCell) that indicates a BWP switch for the first group of the servingcell(s) (e.g., via a first indicator included in the PSS), the UE mayperform a BWP switch for the first group of the serving cell(s), e.g.,the UE may perform a BWP switch for all the serving cells configured inthe first group. If the UE receives the PSS (e.g., on the SpCell) thatindicates a BWP switch for the second group of the serving cell(s)(e.g., via a second indicator included in the PSS), the UE may perform aBWP switch for the second group, e.g., the UE may perform a BWP switchfor all the serving cells configured in the second group. If the PSSindicates a BWP switch for a group of serving cell(s) but the number ofserving cells in the group is zero, the UE may perform a BWP switch of aserving cell with corresponding cell index included in the PSS.Furthermore, the UE may switch the BWP(s) of all the (activated) servingcell(s) included in the group of serving cell(s) to a specific BWP or todifferent BWPs for each (activated) serving cell(s). Each serving cellmay belong to zero, one, or multiple groups.

In one implementation, the PSS may implicitly indicate a BWP switchbased on where (e.g., time/frequency resource occasion) the PSS isreceived. The NW may configure one or multiple PSS monitoring occasions(e.g., on different time/frequency resources or different cells) to aUE. The time/frequency resource(s) or different cells may bepreconfigured by the gNB via DL RRC message(s). The UE may determine thecell(s) on which BWP switch should be performed based on the PSSmonitoring occasion on which the UE receives the PSS. The correspondenceor association between a PSS monitoring occasion and a cell(s) may beconfigured by the NW or predetermined according to the 3GPPspecification. A PSS monitoring occasion may be associated with one ormultiple cells. Alternatively, a PSS monitoring occasion may beassociated with one or multiple groups of serving cells.

For example, when the UE receives a PSS on a first cell and the PSSindicates a BWP switch, the UE may need to perform a BWP switch for thefirst cell. When the UE receives a PSS on a second cell, and the PSSindicates a BWP switch, the UE may need to perform a BWP switch for thesecond cell. The UE may not perform BWP switch for other cell(s) if theUE does not receive a PSS on the other cell(s).

For example, a UE may monitor PSS(s) in several search spaces, CORESETs,or combinations thereof. When the UE receives a PSS (indicating BWPswitch) in a first search space, a first CORESET, or a combinationthereof, the UE may need to perform a BWP switch for a first cellassociated with the first search space/the first CORESET. When the UEreceives a PSS (indicating BWP switch) in a second search space, asecond CORESET, or combination thereof other than the first cell/firstCORESET, the UE may need to perform a BWP switch for the second cell.The UE may not perform BWP switch for other cell(s) where the PSS isassociated with different search spaces, CORESETs, or combinationsthereof.

For example, the gNB may preconfigure multiple searchspaceID (e.g.,specified in the 3GPP TS 38.331) for a PSS associated with multipleserving cells (e.g., SpCell, SCell). Each of the searchspaceID may beassociated with one or more serving cells. When the UE receives a PSS ona PDCCH associated with the search space, the UE may need to perform aBWP switch for the corresponding serving cells.

In one implementation, the PSS may explicitly indicate BWP switch on aspecific serving cell (e.g., via cell index). The PSS may include theBWP information (e.g., BWP index) and/or the Cell information (e.g.,cell index). The PSS may indicate to the UE to switch the active BWP toa specific BWP (e.g., indicated by the BWP information) and/or indicatethe UE to switch the BWP of a specific cell (e.g., indicated by the cellinformation). The PSS may include cell information of one or more thanone cell. The information of cell(s) may be indicated/configured byanother DL signaling which is not the PSS (e.g., a MAC CE or an RRCsignaling). The PSS may be used for cross-carrier BWP switch. Forexample, the UE may receive the PSS on a first cell (e.g., SpCell) andperform the BWP switch on a second cell (e.g., SCell) based on the PSS.

For example, if a UE's current active BWP of a first cell is a firstBWP, when the UE receives a PSS that includes a second BWP ID andincludes the first cell's ID, the UE may switch the active BWP from thefirst BWP of the first cell to a second BWP of the first cell.

For example, the PSS may indicate to the UE to switch the active BWP ofall the (activated) serving cells (of the UE) to an indicated BWP (ifthe PSS includes BWP information but without cell information) or to anindicated BWP of an indicated cell (if the PSS includes both the BWPinformation and cell information).

More specifically, if the cell ID included in the PSS is 0 or a specificvalue, the UE may perform a BWP switch of the SpCell or perform BWPswitch of all the (activated) serving cells (of the UE). Alternatively,if the PSS does not have any field that indicates a cell ID, the UE mayperform a BWP switch of the SpCell or perform BWP switch of all the(activated) serving cells (of the UE). It is noted that performing BWPswitch of a serving cell (e.g., an SpCell) may refer to switching oneBWP on the serving cell to another BWP on the serving cell.

In one implementation, if the UE receives a PSS for BWP switch for aserving cell while an RA procedure associated with the serving cell isongoing, the UE may stop/abort the ongoing RA procedure and switch theBWP for the serving cell indicated by the PSS.

In one implementation, if the UE receives a PSS for BWP switch for aserving cell while an RA procedure associated with the serving cell isongoing, it is up to UE implementation whether to switch the active BWPfor the serving cell or ignore the PSS for BWP switch (except that thePSS indicates to the UE to switch the active BWP for the serving cell toa specific BWP).

In one implementation, a PSS may indicate BWP switch to a specific BWPfor one or more or a group of cells. The PSS may have a field to includea BWP ID. The PSS may have a field with only one bit to indicate whetherthe UE should switch the BWP or the one or more or group of cells. Ifthe PSS indicates to the UE to switch the BWP for the one or more orgroup of cells, the UE may switch the current active BWP to a specificBWP for the serving cell. If the current active BWP for the serving cellis the same as the specific BWP for the one or more or group of cells,the UE may not perform a BWP switch for the one or more or group ofcells. The specific BWP for the one or more or group of cells may bepreconfigured by NW or specified in the specification.

For example, the PSS may (only and/or implicitly) indicate to the UE toswitch the BWP for one or more or group of cells to the initial/defaultBWP. For example, when the UE receives a PSS (e.g., on the PSSmonitoring occasion of SpCell), and the PSS indicates to the UE toswitch the BWP for the one or more or group of cells, the UE may switchthe current BWP for the one or more or group of cells to theinitial/default BWP. The UE should switch which cell's BWP may be basedon the implementations disclosed previously.

For example, the PSS may (only and/or implicitly) indicate BWP switchfor one or more or group of cells to a specific BWP. For example, whenthe UE receives a PSS (e.g., on the PSS monitoring occasion of anSpCell), and the PSS indicates to the UE to switch the BWP for one ormore or group of cells, the UE may switch the current BWP for one ormore or group of cells to the specific BWP. The specific BWP may be oneof the BWP configured in BWP-Downlink, BWP-DownlinkCommon,firstActiveDownlinkBWP, and/or BWP-DownlinkDedicated. The specific BWPmay be one of the UL BWP configured in BWP-Uplink, BWP-UplinkCommon,firstActiveUplinkBWP and or BWP-UplinkDedicated. The specific BWP may beconfigured in a configuration of PSS. The specific BWP may be configuredin a case that the PSS is configured. The specific BWP may be a BWP witha narrow bandwidth. The specific BWP may be configured for power saving(e.g., the specific BWP may be a dormant BWP). The UE may determinewhich cell's BWP should be switched based on the implementationsdescribed above.

For example, the PSS may indicate to a UE to switch the BWP to aspecific BWP for one or more or group of cells that is explicitlyindicated by the PSS. The PSS may indicate to the UE to switch thecurrent active BWP to which BWP by including a BWP ID. For example, ifthe UE's current active BWP is BWP ID #1, then when the UE receives aPSS (e.g., on the PSS monitoring occasion of the SpCell) and the PSSincludes BWP ID #2, the UE may switch the active BWP to another BWP withBWP ID #2. The UE may determine which cell's BWP should be switchedbased on the implementations described above. If the BWP ID included inthe PSS is the same as the UE's active BWP, the UE may not switch theBWP. For example, the UE may ignore the PSS for the BWP switch in thiscase.

For example, the PSS may indicate to the UE to switch the BWP to aspecific BWP for one or more or a group of cells in an implicit way. Forexample, when the UE receives a PSS (e.g., on the PSS monitoringoccasion of the SpCell), and the PSS indicates to the UE to switch theBWP for the one or more or group of cells, the UE may determine whichBWP to switch to for the one or more or group of cells based on wherethe UE receives the PSS (e.g., on specific time/frequency resource(s) ordifferent cells). For example, the different CORSESETs/search spaces maybe associated with different BWPs.

In another example, the gNB may preconfigure multiple search space IDs(e.g., parameters each denoted as searchspaceID, as specified in the3GPP TS 38.331) associated with multiple BWPs for a PSS. EachsearchspaceID may be associated with a specific BWP. When the UEreceives a PSS on a PDCCH associated with the search space, the UE mayneed to perform a BWP switch for one or more or group of cells to switchto the BWP corresponding to the searchspaceID.

In one implementation, if a PSS does not include any BWP/cellinformation, or the BWP/cell information includes a specific BWPID/specific cell ID, the UE may not need to perform a BWP switch. If thePSS indicates a BWP ID that is the same as the active BWP ID for a cell,the UE may not perform the BWP switch on the cell.

In one implementation, if the PSS (e.g., monitored/received on the PSSoccasion) indicates to the UE to wake up (e.g., via a wake-upindicator), the UE may not switch the active BWP. If the PSS indicatesto the UE not to wake up (or to go to sleep), the UE may switch theactive BWP to a specific BWP. The specific BWP may be a default BWP, aninitial BWP, a narrow BWP, and/or a specific BWP for power saving. Thespecific BWP may be indicated/preconfigured by NW or specified in the3GPP specification.

In one implementation, if the PSS (e.g., monitored/received on the PSSoccasion) indicates to the UE to wake up, the UE may not switch theactive BWP. If the PSS indicates to the UE not to wake up (or to go tosleep), the UE may increase a BWP switch counter by 1. Once the BWPswitch counter reaches a threshold which preconfigured by the gNB, theUE may switch the active BWP to a specific BWP. The specific BWP may bea default BWP, an initial BWP, a narrow BWP, and/or a specific BWP forpower saving. The specific BWP may be indicated by NW or specified inthe 3GPP specification or be predefined. The BWP switch counter may beset to zero once the UE receives the PSS that indicates to the UE towake up. The BWP switch counter may be set to zero once the UE receivesa PDCCH for scheduling (e.g., for DL or UL (re)transmission).

In one implementation, if the PSS (e.g., monitored/received on the PSSoccasion) indicates to the UE to wake up, the UE may switch the activeBWP. If the PSS indicates to the UE not to wake up (or to go to sleep),the UE may not switch the active BWP to a specific BWP. The specific BWPmay be a BWP for scheduling.

In one implementation, while the UE receives a PSS that indicates a BWPswitch of a cell, the UE may assume it may wake up at all serving cells(e.g., including the PCell) in the upcoming DRX On-duration.

In one implementation, while the UE receives a PSS that indicates BWPswitch of a specific cell, the UE may assume it may wake up at allserving cells belonging to the PTAG in the upcoming DRX On-duration.

Case #2: UE Behaviors for BWP Operations Via PSS

A PDCCH (e.g., a DCI for scheduling) may be received at any time in theDRX active time. If the UE receives a PDCCH for BWP switch, and the UEswitches the active DL BWP to a BWP that is not a default BWP and/or aninitial BWP, the UE may start or restart a timer (e.g.,bwp-InactivityTimer) associated with the active DL BWP. However, themonitoring occasion of the PSS may be configured before each DRXOn-duration, and therefore, there may be a time gap (or an offset)between the PSS reception and the DRX active time. During the time gap,the NW may not schedule the UE since the UE does not stay in the DRXactive time for PDCCH monitoring. The method(s) of determining the timefor the UE to start/restart the bwp-InactivityTimer (if the PSS is usedto indicate BWP switch) are as follows.

FIG. 3 illustrates the timing of starting or restarting thebwp-InactivityTimer, in accordance with an implementation of the presentdisclosure. As illustrated in FIG. 3 , the UE may start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer when receiving a PSS (or PDCCH WUS). For example,the UE may start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer at time T1.

In one implementation, the PSS may indicate to the UE to switch the BWP.Whether the PSS is used to indicate the UE to switch the BWP may bedetermined based on the implementations described above. If the PSSindicates to the UE to switch the BWP to a default/initial BWP, the UEmay not start/restart the bwp-InactivityTimer, or may stop thebwp-InactivityTimer (if the bwp-InactivityTimer is running). The UE maystart or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer at a symbol/slot/subframe in aPSS monitoring occasion (e.g., the PSS monitoring occasion 302) if theUE receives a PSS on the PSS monitoring occasion. If the PSS indicatesto the UE to perform BWP switch on more than one serving cell, the UEmay start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer associated with thecorresponding serving cells (e.g., if the BWP indicated by the PSS isnot a default/initial BWP). An example of the corresponding UE operationis in Table 1.

TABLE 1 Example 1>if a PDCCH or a PDCCH-WUS for BWP switch is received,and the MAC entity  switches the active DL BWP:  2>if thedefaultDownlinkBWP-Id is configured, and the MAC entity switches to theDL   BWP which is not indicated by the defaultDownlinkBWP-Id; or  2>ifthe defaultDownlinkBWP-Id is not configured, and the MAC entity switchesto the   DL BWP which is not the initialDownlinkBWP:   3>start orrestart the bwp-InactivityTimer associated with the active DL BWP.

In one implementation, the UE may start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer when the active BWP has already been switched (e.g.,switch from the BWP #1 308 to the BWP #2 310). After the UE receives thePSS for BWP switch at a DL slot on a serving cell, the UE may need sometime (e.g., a time gap 312 for a BWP switch delay) to switch the BWP. Inthis situation, for example, the UE may start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer at time T2.

In one implementation, if the UE receives a PSS that indicates to the UEto switch the BWP, the UE may start performing BWP switch, and the UEmay start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer when the UE is able toreceive a PDSCH (for DL active BWP switch) or transmit a PUSCH (for ULactive BWP switch) on the new BWP on the serving cell. Whether the PSSindicates to the UE to switch the BWP may be based on theimplementations described above. If the PSS indicates to the UE toswitch the BWP to a default/initial BWP, the UE may not start or restartthe bwp-InactivityTimer. If the PSS indicates to the UE to switch theBWP to a default/initial BWP, the UE may stop the bwp-InactivityTimer.For example, if the PSS indicates to the UE to switch the active BWP onmultiple serving cells, the UE starts or restarts thebwp-InactivityTimer associated with each corresponding serving cellbased on when the active BWP of each serving cell has been switched. Forexample, time T2 may be assigned by a gNB via a PDCCH-WUS configuration.In another example, time T2 may be a default value. Besides, a common T2value may be applied for all serving cells, or a cell-specific T2 valuemay be configured per a serving cell basis.

In one implementation, the UE may start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer at the beginning of the DRX cycle or the DRXOn-duration (e.g., the DRX On-duration 306) of the DRX cycle. Forexample, the UE may start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer at time T3.

In one implementation, if the UE receives a PSS that indicates to the UEto switch the BWP, the UE may start performing the BWP switch, and theUE may start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer at the startingsymbol/slot/subframe of the first upcoming DRX cycle/On-duration.Whether the PSS indicates to the UE to switch the BWP may be based onthe implementations described above. If the PSS indicates to the UE toswitch the BWP to a default/initial BWP, the UE may not start or restartthe bwp-InactivityTimer. If the PSS indicates to the UE to switch theBWP to a default/initial BWP, the UE may stop the bwp-InactivityTimer.For example, if the PSS indicates BWP switch on multiple serving cells,the UE may start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer of each serving cellat the same time (e.g., if the staring symbols/slots/subframes of theDRX cycle/On-duration are the same for the serving cells).

In one implementation, the UE may start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer after “n” symbol/slot/subframe(s) when the receivesthe PSS, where n is a natural integer, which may be configured by the NWor specified in the 3GPP specification. In one implementation, the valueof “n” may refer to an offset (e.g., the offset 304) configured for aPSS monitoring occasion (e.g., the PSS monitoring occasion 302). Thevalue of “n” may be configured in a PSS configuration.

Case #3: PSS Monitoring Occasion in DRX Active Time and Misdetection ofPSS

A UE may monitor the PDCCH while the UE is in the DRX active time. Thereare several timers (e.g., drx-onduration timer, drx-InactivityTimer,etc.) and events (e.g., when SR is sent and is pending, etc.) specifiedin the 3GPP TS 38.321 V15.5.0 which would trigger the UE to wake up tomonitor the PDCCH. In some situations, the DRX active time may coverand/or overlap with the PSS monitoring occasion(s) in the time domain.For example, UL data from the UE may arrive when the UE is not in theDRX active time. In this situation, the UE may trigger an SR procedureto transmit an SR to request an UL resource. Moreover, the UE may stayin the DRX active time when the SR is transmitted, and the SR procedureis pending. It is likely that the DRX active time may overlap with(e.g., partially and/or fully overlap with) the PSS monitoring occasionin the time domain. In another example, the drx-InactivityTimer may bestarted or restarted when the UE receives a PDCCH that indicates a newtransmission. Consequently, it is also possible that thedrx-InactivityTimer keeps running on the next PSS monitoringoccasion(s). However, it may be redundant that the UE monitors the PSSduring the DRX active time because the UE has already ramped up thepower to monitor the PDCCH. Additionally, the UE-specific configurationof the search space sets(s) dedicated to the PSS monitoring may be used,which means the search space configured for the monitoring of PSS may bedifferent from the search space configured for other DCI(s). Thus,monitoring the PSS in DRX active time may waste the UE's processingpower due to additional blind decoding overhead, resulting inunnecessary constraints and degraded detection performance.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a process of a UE not monitoring a PSSin the DRX active time, in accordance with an implementation of thepresent disclosure. In the implementation illustrated in FIG. 4 , the UEmay not monitor a PSS monitoring occasion (e.g., the PSS monitoringoccasion 402) while the UE is in the DRX active time (e.g., the DRXactive time 408). Additionally, the LIE may start a timer (e.g.,drx-onDurationTimer) at the beginning of the subsequent DRX cycle (e.g.,at the beginning of the DRX On-duration 404) if the UE does not monitorthe PSS, the UE does not receive the PSS successfully, and/or the LIE isin the DRX active time (e.g., the DRX active time 408) during a PSSmonitoring occasion (e.g., the PSS monitoring occasion 402). The UE maymonitor a PSS monitoring occasion (e.g., the PSS monitoring occasion406) when the UE is not in the DRX active time.

It is noted that because the PSS may be used to indicate BWP switch,misalignments between the NW and the UE for the active BWP of the UE mayoccur if the UE does not monitor or detect or receive the PSS. Forexample, when the NW instructs the UE to switch from a first BWP to asecond BWP via a PSS, the UE may not switch the current active BWP andstill consider the first BWP as the active BWP because the UE does notmonitor or detect or receive the PSS during the PSS monitoring occasion.In addition, in this situation, the NW may still perform scheduling onthe second BWP since the NW may mistakenly consider that the active BWPof the UE has become the second BWP, causing the UE to be unable toreceive scheduling information from the NW.

In addition, in some situations, the UE may mistakenly or unsuccessfullydetect/receive a PSS on a PSS monitoring occasion. For example, if theNW transmits a PSS on a PSS monitoring occasion, although the UEmonitors the PSS monitoring occasion, the UE may fail to receive the PSSon the PSS monitoring occasion (e.g., because the UE does notsuccessfully decode the PSS). Furthermore, if the PSS is multipurpose(e.g., used to indicate BWP switch and wake up the UE at the same time),the failed detection/reception of the PSS may cause more issues. Forexample, when the NW instructs the UE to switch from a first BWP to asecond BWP via a PSS, the UE may not follow the PSS to switch thecurrent active BWP due to the failed detection/reception of the PSS andmay still consider the first BWP as the active BWP. In addition, in thissituation, the NW may still perform scheduling on the second BWP sincethe NW may mistakenly consider the active BWP of the UE has become thesecond BWP, causing the UE to be unable to receive schedulinginformation from the NW.

The present disclosure provides one or more implementations to addressthese issues.

In one implementation, the UE may not expect the NW to transmit a PSSduring the DRX active time. The UE may not monitor the PSS (on the PSSmonitoring occasion) during the DRX active time. For example, the NW maynot use the PSS to switch the UE's active BWP during the DRX activetime. The NW may only use other scheduling DCI instead of PSS(s) toswitch the UE's active BWP during the DRX active time.

In one implementation, the UE may not transmit a specific message (e.g.,including a confirmation message and/or feedback information) to the NWif the UE does not monitor (or does not receive) the PSS in the DRXactive time. When the UE monitors and/or receives the PSS, the UE mayneed to transmit such a specific message to the NW. A confirmationmessage may be a MAC CE. For example, the gNB may grant the UL resourceson an upcoming DRX On-duration if the gNB has transmitted the PSS toinstruct the UE to perform the BWP switch. Otherwise, the UE may triggeran SR procedure(s) to transmit the confirmation message. On the otherhand, feedback information (e.g., ACK/NACK) may be PHY signaling.

In one implementation, the specific message (e.g., including aconfirmation message and/or feedback information) may be transmittedonly when the UE tries to monitor the PSS. The content of the specificmessage may vary depending upon whether the UE successfully monitors thePSS. For example, the UE may transmit an ACK to the NW if the UEsuccessfully receives the PSS on the PSS monitoring occasion.Conversely, the UE may transmit a NACK to the NW if the UE does not(successfully) receive the PSS on the PSS monitoring occasion.

In one implementation, the UE may start or restart a timer (e.g.,bwp-InactivityTimer) when the UE transmits the specific message to NW.

For example, when the UE receives the PSS and the PSS indicates to theUE to perform a BWP switch, the UE may perform BWP switch and transmitthe specific message to the NW. When the UE transmits the specificmessage to the NW, the UE may start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer.For another example, when the UE receives the PSS and the PSS indicatesto the UE not to perform the BWP switch, the UE may not perform the BWPswitch but still transmit the specific message to NW. When the UEtransmits the specific message to the NW, the UE may not start orrestart the bwp-InactivityTimer.

In one implementation, the UE may transmit signaling to the NW if the UEdoes not monitor (and/or does not receive) the PSS (on the PSSmonitoring occasion) in the DRX active time. The signaling may be usedto inform the NW that the UE does not monitor the PSS monitoringoccasion and/or the UE unsuccessfully receives the PSS.

In one implementation, the NW may transmit multiple PSSs (e.g., toperform PSS transmission repetitions) (on the PSS monitoring occasion)to a UE before a DRX On-duration (or a DRX cycle). More specifically,the PSSs may indicate the same information. For example, the NW mayconfigure at least one of PSS monitoring occasions (on differenttime/frequency resources) before a DRX On-duration (or a DRX cycle). TheUE may monitor at least one of the PSS monitoring occasions to decodethe possible PSS. If the UE successfully receives/decodes a PSS on atleast one of the PSS monitoring occasion(s) before the DRX On-duration,the UE may stop monitoring the other PSS monitoring occasion(s) beforethe DRX On-duration. If the UE does not receive (and/or decodesuccessfully) a PSS on all the PSS monitoring occasion(s) before the DRXOn-duration, the UE may consider the PSS is received unsuccessfully. TheUE may, for example, transmit feedback to the NW to inform the NW of theunsuccessful reception of PSS.

Enhancements of PSS

In one implementation, a PSS (e.g., which is received outside the DRXactive time) may be used to activate/deactivate an SCell(s). Forexample, the PSS may have a field to include the SCell information(e.g., SCell ID(s)). For example, the PSS may have a field to indicateSCell activation/deactivation. For example, the PSS may explicitly orimplicitly indicate which SCell(s) should be activated or deactivated.

Provided that a first SCell of a UE is activated and a second SCell ofthe UE is deactivated, one or more of the followingimplementations/examples may be applied when the UE receives a PSS.

In one implementation, the PSS may not have a field to indicate SCellactivation/deactivation. If the PSS includes the SCell ID of the firstSCell, since the first SCell of the UE has already been activated beforethe UE receives the PSS, the UE may deactivate the first SCell when theUE receives the PSS. If the PSS includes the SCell ID of the secondSCell ID, since the second SCell of the UE has already been deactivatedbefore the UE receives the PSS, the UE may activate the second SCellwhen receives the PSS.

In one implementation, the PSS may not have a field to indicate SCellactivation/deactivation. If the PSS includes the SCell ID of the firstSCell, since the first SCell of the UE has already been activated beforethe UE receives the PSS, the UE may deactivate the first SCell when theUE receives the PSS. If the PSS includes the SCell ID of the secondSCell ID, since the second SCell of the UE has already been deactivatedbefore the UE receives the PSS, the UE may activate the second SCellwhen receives the PSS.

In one implementation, the PSS may include a field to indicate SCellactivation/deactivation. If the PSS includes an SCell ID, the UE mayactivate or deactivate the SCell indicated by the SCell ID based on thefield that indicates the SCell activation/deactivation.

In one implementation, whether to activate or deactivate may be based onthe PSS indicating to the UE to wake up or not wake up. If the PSSindicates to the UE to wake up and includes an SCell ID, the UE mayactivate the SCell indicated by the SCell ID. If the PSS indicates tothe UE not to wake up and includes an SCell ID, the UE may deactivatethe SCell indicated by the SCell ID.

In one implementation, if the PSS does not have a field to indicateSCell activation/deactivation (and/or a field to indicate SCellinformation (e.g., an SCell ID)), or if the field to indicate SCellactivation/deactivation (and/or the field to indicate SCell information)has a specific value, the UE may not perform the SCellactivation/deactivation.

In one implementation, which SCell(s) to be activated/deactivated by thePSS may be pre-configured. If the UE receives a PSS that includes afield to indicate SCell activation, the UE may activate (one or more orgroup of or all of) the SCell(s) configured by the NW. If the UEreceives a PSS that includes a field to indicate SCell deactivation, theUE may deactivate (one or more or group of or all of) the SCell(s)configured by the NW.

In one implementation, once the UE receives a PSS indicating SCellactivation, the MAC entity of the UE may start or restart a timer (e.g.,sCellDeactivationTimer) associated with the SCell at the time specifiedin the 3GPP TS 38.213.

In one implementation, a PSS may be used to trigger a dormant operationof an SCell(s). It is noted that, when a serving cell (e.g., an SCell)of a UE is in the dormancy state, it may mean that the UE is configuredwith (or performs) a dormant operation on the serving cell. Thus, theterms “dormancy state” and “dormant operation” may be interchangeablyutilized in some implementations of the present disclosure.

The dormant operation for a serving cell (e.g., an SCell) may includeperforming CSI measurement(s) on the serving cell and stopping (or notperforming) PDCCH monitoring on the serving cell. In someimplementations, the dormant operation for a serving cell may furtherinclude performing AGC for the serving cell and performing beammanagement for the serving cell.

In one implementation, the PSS may have a field to include cellinformation (e.g., for one or more or group of cells). For example, thePSS may have a field to indicate the dormant operation for one or moreor a group of cells. For example, the PSS may explicitly or implicitlyindicate the cell(s) on which the UE is configured with (or performs) adormant operation. The PSS may explicitly or implicitly indicate to theUE on which cell(s) the UE is configured with (or performs) the dormantoperation.

Introducing a dormancy state (or dormant operation) for a serving cellmay be a solution to fast return to SCell utilization for data transfer.As disclosed previously, the dormant operation for a serving cell mayrefer to a process that the UE may stop monitoring PDCCH but continueother activities such as CSI measurements, AGC, and beam management onthe serving cell.

Provided that a first BWP of a first SCell of a UE is configured withthe dormant operation and a second BWP of a second cell of the UE is notconfigured with the dormant operation, if the UE receives a PSS, one ormore than one of the following implementations/examples may be applied.

In one implementation, the PSS may have a field to indicate/activate thedormant operation for one or more or a group of SCell(s). If the PSSincludes cell information for one or more or a group of SCell(s), the UEmay determine whether to perform/activate the dormant operation on theBWP of the one or more or group of SCell(s) based on the field.

In one implementation, whether the UE performs/activates the dormantoperation on a BWP of one or more or a group of cells may be based onwhether the PSS indicates to the UE to wake up. For example, if the PS Sindicates to the UE to wake up and includes the SCell information of oneor more or a group of SCells, the UE may not perform/activate thedormant operation on the BWP of the one or more or a group of SCells. Ifthe PSS indicates to the UE not to wake up and includes the SCellinformation of one or more or a group of SCells, the UE may notperform/activate the dormant operation on the BWP of the one or more ora group of SCells.

In one implementation, if the PSS does not include a field indicatingthe dormant operation on a BWP of one or more or group of SCell(s)and/or a field indicating SCell information (e.g., SCell ID), the UE maynot change the dormant operation on the BWP of the one or more or groupof SCells.

In one implementation, a PSS may have a field that indicates only SCellinformation or SCell group information (e.g., by including an index forone or more or group of SCells) but may not have a field that indicatesthe dormant operation.

In one implementation, the UE should perform/activate dormant operationon the BWP, of which one or more or group of SCell(s) may bepre-configured. If the UE receives a PSS that includes a fieldindicating the dormant operation for a group of SCells, the UE mayperform/activate dormant operation on(all) the SCell(s) in the groupconfigured by the NW.

In one implementation, the UE may be configured with cross-carrierscheduling, and the PSS may be received in the scheduling cell. If thescheduling cell is instructed to activate dormant operation, all of thescheduled cells may be instructed to perform/activate dormant operation.

In one implementation, the UE may be configured with cross-carrierscheduling, and the PSS may be received in the scheduling cell. If thedormant operation is configured to a specific BWP (e.g., a dormant BWP),performing BWP switch to the specific BWP for the scheduling cell mayimply that all the scheduled cell(s) may have a BWP switched to thespecific BWP on which the UE is configured with the dormant operation.

In one implementation, the PSS may include information identifying thegroup(s) of serving cells (e.g., among RRC configured groups) on whichthe UE needs to perform/activate (or deactivate) the dormant operation.For example, a bitmap may be included in the PSS. Each bit within thebitmap may indicate a group (of serving cells). For example, a bit inthe bitmap may be set to 1 to indicate that the UE needs toperform/activate the dormant operation on the (serving cells of the)corresponding group, which means the UE should perform the dormantoperation on the active BWPs of the serving cell(s) in the group.Alternatively, the bit may be set to 0 to indicate that the UE needs todeactivate the dormant operation on the (serving cells of the)corresponding group such that the UE should not perform/activate dormantoperation on the active BWPs of the serving cell(s) in the group.Moreover, the bits in the bitmap may be associated with the groups in anascending order. For example, the first bit in the bitmap may beassociated with a group with the largest group index (or a groupcontaining a cell having the largest cell index in the same MAC entity)and the second bit in the bitmap may be associated with a group withsecond large group index, and so on.

In one implementation, the PSS may include information identifying thegroup(s) of serving cells, (e.g., among an RRC configured groups) onwhich the UE may monitor the PDCCH on the next occurrence of thedrx-onDurationTimer (of that serving cells of the group).

In one implementation, the UE may determine whether to monitor a PDCCHof a serving cell (e.g., in a DRX On-duration) based on whether the UEneeds to perform/activate the dormant operation on the serving cells. Ifthe UE needs to perform/activate the dormant operation on the servingcell, the UE may not monitor a PDCCH of the serving cell (e.g., in a DRXOn-duration). If the UE needs to deactivate the dormant operation on theserving cell, the UE may monitor the PDCCH of the serving cell (e.g., ina DRX On-duration).

In one implementation, the UE may determine whether to start or restartthe drx-onDurationTimer of a serving cell (e.g., in a DRX On-duration)based on whether the UE needs to perform/activate the dormant operationon the serving cell. If the UE needs to perform/activate the dormantoperation on the serving cells, the UE may not start or restart thedrx-onDuration Timer of the serving cell (e.g., in a DRX On-duration).If the UE needs to perform/activate the dormant operation on the servingcell, the UE may start or restart the drx-onDurationTimer of the servingcell (e.g., in a DRX On-duration).

For example, the UE may determine whether to start or restart thedrx-onDurationTimer of a serving cell (e.g., on DRX On-duration) basedon whether the UE receives a PSS to change the dormant operation of theserving cell. If the PSS indicates to the UE to perform/activate dormantoperation on the serving cell, the UE may not start or restart thedrx-onDurationTimer of the serving cell (e.g., on DRX On-duration). Ifthe PSS indicates to the UE not to perform/activate dormant operation onthe serving cell, the UE may start or restart the drx-onDurationTimer ofthe serving cell (e.g., on DRX On-duration).

In one implementation, if a UE receives a PSS (e.g., on an SpCell) thatindicates to the UE to wake up (on the next occurrence of the DRXOn-duration) and indicates that the UE needs to perform/activate thedormant operation on a group (or a set) of serving cell(s), the UE maynot monitor a PDCCH of the serving cell(s) in the group (on the nextoccurrence of the DRX On-duration), and the UE may monitor the PDCCH ofthe serving cell(s) that are not in the group (on the next occurrence ofthe DRX On-duration).

In one implementation, if a UE receives a PSS (e.g., on an SpCell) whichindicates to the UE to wake up (on the next occurrence of the DRXOn-duration) and indicates that the UE needs to perform/activate thedormant operation on a group (or a set) of serving cell(s), the UE maynot start or restart the drx-onDurationTimer of the serving cell(s) inthe group (on the next occurrence of the DRX On-duration), and the UEmay start or restart the drx-onDurationTimer of the serving cell(s)which are not in the group (on the next occurrence of the DRXOn-duration).

In one implementation, if a UE receives a PSS (e.g., on an SpCell) thatindicates to the UE not to wake up (on the next occurrence of the DRXOn-duration) and indicates that the UE needs to perform/activate thedormant operation on a group (or a set) of serving cell(s), the UE maynot monitor a PDCCH of all the serving cell(s) in the group (on the nextoccurrence of the DRX On-duration), and the UE may monitor a PDCCH ofthe serving cell(s) that are not in the group (on the next occurrence ofthe DRX On-duration).

In one implementation, the dormant operation of (a BWP of) an SCell maybe controlled by a timer.

For example, the timer may be started or restarted when the UE isinstructed (e.g., via the PSS) to perform/activate the dormant operationfor an SCell. While the timer is running, the UE may keep performing thedormant operation on (the BWP of) the SCell. When the timer expires, theUE may not perform/activate the dormant operation of (the BWP of) theSCell. The UE may stop the timer if the UE is instructed to notperform/activate (or to deactivate) the dormant operation of (the BWPof) the SCell.

On the other hand, since the PSS may be used to trigger the UE to wakeup, the NW may schedule the UE on the upcoming DRX ON duration. However,the bwp-InactivityTimer and/or the sCellDeactivationTimer may expirebefore the DRX ON duration. In this situation, the UE may switch thecurrent active BWP to the default/initial BWP and/or deactivate aSCell(s). Then the NW may not schedule the UE on the original BWP and/orthe SCell. Therefore, the PSS may be used to extend the running time ofthe bwp-InactivityTimer and/or the sCellDeactivationTimer.

In one implementation, the UE may start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer and/or the sCellDeactivationTimer when receiving thePSS. The specific timing to start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimerand/or the sCellDeactivationTimer may be the same as the time for BWPswitch via PSS, as described above.

In one implementation, the UE may start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer and/or the sCellDeactivationTimer when receiving thePSS, and the PSS indicates to the UE to wake up. The specific timing tostart or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer and/or thesCellDeactivationTimer may be the same as the time for BWP switch viaPSS, as described above.

In one implementation, if the UE receives the PSS without any BWP switchcommand, UE will start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer and/or thesCellDeactivationTimer at a first time; On the contrary, if the UEreceiving the PSS with a BWP switch command, UE may start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer and/or the sCellDeactivationTimer at a second time.That is, the time to start the timer may depend on whether a BWP switchcommand is appended in the PSS.

In one implementation, a BWP switch may be controlled by one or more ofthe following methods (a) to (e):

(a) PDCCH Indicating a DL Assignment or an Uplink Grant

If the UE receives a PDCCH for the BWP switch of a serving cell, the UEmay perform the BWP switch to a BWP indicated by the PDCCH (e.g., thePDCCH may include a BWP ID which is different from the current activeBWP of the UE).

(b) Bwp-InactivityTimer

If the bwp-InactivityTimer associated with the DL BWP expires, the UEmay perform the BWP switch to a default BWP (if defaultDownlinkBWP-Id isconfigured) or an initial BWP (which is indicated byinitialDownlinkBWP).

(c) RRC Signaling

Upon performing RRC (re-)configuration, a firstActiveDownlinkBWP IEcontains the ID of the DL BWP to be activated. If this field is absent,the RRC (re-)configuration does not impose the BWP switch.

Upon performing RRC (re-)configuration, a firstActiveUplinkBWP IEcontains the ID of the UL BWP to be activated. If this field is absent,the RRC (re-)configuration does not impose the BWP switch.

(d) Upon Initiation of an RA Procedure

Upon initiation of the RA procedure on a serving cell, the UE may:

1> if PRACH occasions are not configured for the active UL BWP: 2>switch the active UL BWP to BWP indicated by initialUplinkBWP; 2> if theServing Cell is a SpCell: 3> switch the active DL BWP to BWP indicatedby initialDownlinkBWP. 1> else: 2> if the Serving Cell is a SpCell:3> if the active DL BWP does not have the same bwp- Id as the active ULBWP: 4> switch the active DL BWP to the DL BWP with the same bwp-Id asthe active UL BWP.

(e) PSS

If the UE receives the PSS for BWP switch for a group of cells, the UEmay switch the BWP of all the cells configured in the group. The PSS mayindicate a BWP switch by including a bitmap. Each bit in the bitmap maybe associated with a group of cells. The correspondence between thecell(s) and the group(s) may be configured by the NW (e.g., via RRCsignaling).

When a DRX function is configured, the UE may not have to continuouslymonitor a PDCCH. In addition, the DRX function may be characterized bythe following factors:

DRX On-duration: a time duration that the UE waits for, after waking up,to receive PDCCHs. If the UE successfully decodes a PDCCH, the UE staysawake and starts an inactivity timer;

DRX inactivity timer: used for determining a time duration that the UEwaits to successfully decode a PDCCH, from the last successful decodingof a PDCCH and upon failing to successfully decode the PDCCH, the UE cango back to sleep. The UE may restart the inactivity timer following asingle successful decoding of a PDCCH for a first transmission only(e.g., not for retransmissions);

retransmission timer: used for determining a time duration until aretransmission can be expected;

DRX cycle: used for determining a periodic repetition of the on-durationfollowed by a possible period of inactivity;

DRX active time: the total duration that the UE monitors a PDCCH. Thismay include the on-duration of a DRX cycle, the time the UE isperforming continuous reception while the inactivity timer has notexpired, and the time when the UE is performing a continuous receptionwhile waiting for a retransmission opportunity.

FIG. 5 illustrates a DRX cycle according to an implementation of thepresent disclosure. As illustrated in FIG. 5 , each DRX cycle 502 mayinclude a DRX On-duration 504, during which the UE may perform PDCCHmonitoring. The rest of the time period (e.g., time interval 506) in theDRX cycle may be considered as an opportunity for DRX.

When a DRX cycle is configured, the DRX active time may include the timeduring which—drx-onDurationTimer or drx-InactivityTimer ordrx-RetransmissionTimerDL or drx-RetransmissionTimerUL orra-ContentionResolutionTimer is running; or an SI is transmitted on aPUCCH, and the corresponding SI procedure is pending; or a PDCCHindicating a new transmission addressed to the C-RNTI of the MAC entityhas not been received after successful reception of an RA Response forthe RA Preamble not selected by the MAC entity among thecontention-based RA Preamble.

The MAC entity may not monitor the PDCCH if the PDCCH is not a completePDCCH occasion (e.g., the DRX active time starts or ends in the middleof the PDCCH occasion).

Various types of time delay are provided as follows.

Active BWP Switch Delay

The requirements of Active BWP switch delay apply for a UE configuredwith more than one BWP on PCell or any activated SCell in standalone NRor NE-DC, PCell, PSCell, or any activated SCell in MCG or SCG in NR-DC,or PSCell or any activated SCell in SCG in EN-DC. The UE may completethe switch of active DL and/or UL BWP within the delay specified in thissection.

DCI and Timer-Based BWP Switch Delay

For DCI-based BWP switch, after the UE receives a BWP switch request atDL slot n on a serving cell, the UE may be able to receive PDSCH (for DLactive BWP switch) or transmit PUSCH (for UL active BWP switch) on thenew BWP on the serving cell on which BWP switch on the first DL or ULslot occurs right after the beginning of DL slot n+T_(BWPswitchDelay).

The UE is not required to transmit UL signals or receive DL signalsduring time duration T_(BWPswitchDelay) on the cell where DCI-based BWPswitch occurs. The UE is not required to follow the requirementsspecified in this section when performing a DCI-based BWP switch betweenthe BWPs in disjoint channel bandwidths or in partially overlappingchannel bandwidths.

For timer-based BWP switch, the UE may start BWP switch at DL slot n,where n is the beginning of a DL subframe (FR1) or DL half-subframe(FR2) immediately after a BWP-inactivity timer bwp-InactivityTimerexpires on a serving cell, and the UE may be able to receive PDSCH (forDL active BWP switch) or transmit PUSCH (for UL active BWP switch) onthe new BWP on the serving cell on which BWP switch on the first DL orUL slot occurs right after the beginning of DL slotn+T_(BWPswitchDelay).

The UE is not required to transmit UL signals or receive DL signalsafter bwp-InactivityTimer expires on the cell where a timer-based BWPswitch occurs.

Depending on UE capability bwp-SwitchingDelay, UE may finish the BWPswitch within the time duration T_(BWPswitchDelay) specified in Table 2.

TABLE 2 BWP switch delay NR Slot BWP Switch delay T_(BWPswitchDelay)length (slots) μ (ms) Type 1^(Note 1) Type 2^(Note 1) 0 1 1 3 1 0.5 2 52 0.25 3 9 3 0.125 6 18 ^(Note 1) Depends on UE capability. Note 2: Ifthe BWP switch involves changing of SCS, the BWP switch delay isdetermined by the larger one between the SCS before the BWP switch andthe SCS after the BWP switch.

RRC Based BWP Switch Delay

For RRC-based BWP switch, after the UE receives BWP switch request, UEmay be able to receive PDSCH/PDCCH (for DL active BWP switch) ortransmit PUSCH (for UL active BWP switch) on the new BWP on the servingcell on which BWP switch occurs on the first DL or UL slot right afterthe beginning of

${{{DL}{slot}n} + \frac{T_{RRCprocessingDelay} + T_{BWPswitchDelayRRC}}{{NR}{Slot}{length}}},$where

-   -   DL slot n is the last slot containing the RRC command, and    -   T_(RRCprocessingDelay) is the length of the RRC procedure delay        in milliseconds as specified in the 3GPP TS 38.321 V15.5.0, and    -   T_(BWPswitchDelayRRC)=[6] ms is the time used by the UE to        perform the BWP switch.

The UE is not required to transmit UL signals or receive DL signalsduring the time specified byT_(RRcprocessingDelay)+T_(BWPswitchDelayRRC) on the cell where theRRC-based BWP switch occurs.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart for a method performed by a UE for powersaving operations, in accordance with an implementation of the presentdisclosure. It should be noted that although actions 602, 604, 606, 608,610, and 612 are delineated as separate actions represented asindependent blocks in FIG. 6 , these separately delineated actionsshould not be construed as necessarily order dependent. The order inwhich the actions are performed in FIG. 6 is not intended to beconstrued as a limitation, and any number of the described blocks may becombined in any order to implement the method, or an alternate method.Moreover, one or more of the actions 602, 604, 606, 608, 610, and 612may be omitted in some of the present disclosure.

In action 602, the UE may receive a first RRC configuration indicatingat least one dormancy cell group.

In action 604, the UE may receive a second RRC configuration indicatinga first BWP, on which the UE is configured with a dormant operation, fora serving cell. The dormant operation may include (the UE) performing aCSI measurement and stopping a PDCCH monitoring. In addition, theserving cell may belong to a dormancy cell group of the at least onedormancy cell group.

In one implementation, the dormant operation for the serving cell mayfurther include at least one of (the UE) performing AGC for the servingcell, and (the UE) performing beam management for the serving cell.

In action 606, the LIE may receive a third RRC configuration indicatinga second BWP, on which the UE is not configured with the dormantoperation, for the serving cell.

In action 608, the LIE may receive a PSS including a bitmap, each bit inthe bitmap associated with one of the at least one dormancy cell group.

In one implementation, the PSS may be received by the UE, on a PCell oran SpCell, via DCI that is scrambled by a PS-RNTI.

In one implementation, the PSS may include a wake-up indicator (e.g.,WUS) for starting a DRX On-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer) at abeginning of a DRX cycle.

In one implementation, the PSS may be received by the UE only on anSpCell. That is, the PSS may not be received on an SCell.

In one implementation, the UE may be configured with a DRX operation.

In one implementation, the UE may stop monitoring the PSS on a PDCCHmonitoring occasion when the UE is in a DRX active time, where the PDCCHmonitoring occasion may be configured for the PSS. The UE may monitorthe PSS on the PDCCH monitoring occasion when the UE is not in DRXactive time. As illustrated in FIG. 4 , the UE may stop monitoring thePSS on the PDCCH monitoring occasion 402 when the UE is in the DRXactive time 408, and start monitoring the PSS on another PDCCHmonitoring occasion 406 when the UE is not in the DRX active time 408.

In action 610, the UE may determine an active BWP of the serving cell asthe first BWP after determining that a bit associated with the dormancycell group in the bitmap is set to a first value.

In action 612, the UE may determine the active BWP of the serving cellas the second BWP after determining that the bit is set to a secondvalue.

In one implementation, there may be other serving cells belonging to thedormancy cell group such that the dormancy group may include more thanone serving cell. In this situation, the UE may switch the active BWPsof all of the serving cells belonging to the same dormancy cell groupbased on the bit.

In one implementation, the active BWP may be a DL BWP.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart for another method performed by a UE forpower saving operations, in accordance with an implementation of thepresent disclosure. The method illustrated in FIG. 7 may be performed in(or after) actions 610 and 612 illustrated in FIG. 6 .

As illustrated in FIG. 7 , in action 702, the UE may determine whetherthe active BWP of the serving cell is the first BWP or the second BWP.

In action 704, when the active BWP of the serving cell is determined asthe first BWP, the UE may perform the dormant operation on the servingcell, and/or stop PDCCH monitoring on the serving cell in a case thatthe active BWP of the serving cell is determined as the first BWP.

In action 706, when the active BWP of the serving cell is determined asthe second BWP, the UE may perform the PDCCH monitoring on the servingcell.

FIG. 8 illustrates a process of controlling the dormant operation ofeach dormancy cell group through a PSS according to an implementation ofthe present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIG. 8 , the serving cells of a UE may include a PCell802, an SCell #1 804, an SCell #2 806, and an SCell #3 808. In addition,the UE may receive a first RRC configuration indicating that SCell #1804 and SCell #2 806 belong to the dormancy cell group #1 810, and SCell#3 808 belongs to the dormancy cell group #2 812.

The UE may also receive a second RRC configuration indicating a firstBWP (which is a dormant BWP) for an SCell of the UE. As illustrated inFIG. 8 , the UE may receive a second RRC configuration indicating afirst BWP #1A (which is a dormant BWP) for the SCell #1 804. The UE mayreceive a second RRC configuration indicating a first BWP #1B (which isa dormant BWP) for the SCell #2 806. The UE may receive a second RRCconfiguration indicating a first BWP #1C (which is a dormant BWP) forthe SCell #3 808.

The UE may also receive a third RRC configuration indicating a secondBWP (which is not a dormant BWP) for an SCell of the UE. As illustratedin FIG. 8 , the UE may receive a third RRC configuration indicating asecond BWP #2A (which is not a dormant BWP) for the SCell #1 804. The UEmay receive a third RRC configuration indicating a second BWP #2B (whichis not a dormant BWP) for the SCell #2 806. The UE may receive a thirdRRC configuration indicating a second BWP #2C (which is not a dormantBWP) for the SCell #3 808.

When an SCell (or the dormancy cell group to which the SCell belongs) isindicated as a cell on which the UE needs to perform/activate dormantoperation, the first BWP configured for the SCell may be activated asthe active BWP, on which the dormant operation may be performed. Forexample, when the SCell #1 804 is indicated as a cell on which the UEneeds to perform the dormant operation, the first BWP #1A may beactivated as the active BWP of the SCell #1 804. When the dormancy cellgroup #1 810 is indicated as a dormancy cell group on which the UE needsto perform the dormant operation, the first BWP #1A may be activated asthe active BWP of the SCell #1 804 and the first BWP #1B may beactivated as the active BWP of the SCell #2 806. On the first BWP #1Aand/or the first BWP #1B, the UE may perform the dormant operation(e.g., performing CSI measurements but no PDCCH monitoring). Similarly,when the SCell #3 808 (or the dormancy cell group #2 812 including theSCell #3 808) is indicated as an SCell (or dormancy cell group) on whichthe UE needs to perform the dormant operation, the first BWP #1C may beactivated as the active BWP of the SCell #3 808. The UE may perform thedormant operation on the first BWP #1C.

When an SCell (or the dormancy cell group to which the SCell belongs) isindicated as a cell on which the UE does not need to perform the dormantoperation, the second BWP configured for the SCell may be activated asthe active BWP, on which the dormant operation may not be performed.When the SCell #1 804 is indicated as a cell on which the UE does notneed to perform the dormant operation, the second BWP #2A may beactivated as the active BWP of the SCell #1 804. When the dormancy cellgroup #1 810 is indicated as a dormancy cell group that the UE does notneed to perform the dormant operation, the second BWP #2A may beactivated as the active BWP of the SCell #1 804 and the second BWP #2Bmay be activated as the active BWP of the SCell #2 806. On the secondBWP #2A, the UE may not perform the dormant operation. For example, theUE may perform PDCCH monitoring on the second BWP #2A. Similarly, whenthe SCell #3 808 (or the dormancy cell group #2 812 including the SCell#3 808) is indicated as a cell (or dormancy cell group) that UE does notneed to perform the dormant operation, the second BWP #2C may beactivated as the active BWP of the SCell #3 808.

In one implementation, the dormant operation of a dormancy cell groupmay be controlled by a PSS. As illustrated in FIG. 8 , the PSS 822 mayinclude a wake-up indicator B₀ and a bitmap including several bits(e.g., a bit B₁ and a bit B₂, etc.). Each bit in the bitmap maycorrespond to a dormancy cell group. For example, the bit B₁ maycorrespond to the dormancy cell group #1 810, and the bit B₂ maycorrespond to the dormancy cell group #2 812. Each bit in the bitmap maybe set to a first value (e.g., 1) to indicate that the UE needs toperform/activate the dormant operation on the serving cell(s) in thecorresponding dormancy cell group (e.g., to instruct the UE to activatethe dormant BWP (e.g., the first BWPs #1A, 1B, and 1C in FIG. 8 ) forthe serving cell(s) in the corresponding dormancy cell group), or set toa second value (e.g., 0) to indicate that the UE need not perform thedormant operation (or needs to deactivate the dormant operation) on theserving cell(s) in the corresponding dormancy cell group (e.g., toinstruct the UE to activate the non-dormant BWP (e.g., the second BWPs#2A, 2B, and 2C in FIG. 8 ) for the serving cell(s) in the correspondingdormancy cell group).

For example, when the bit B₁ is set to the first value, the UE mayperform the dormant operation on all SCell(s) in the correspondingdormancy cell group #1 810. In this situation, the UE may determine thatthe first BWP #1A and the first BWP #1B are active BWPs on the SCell #1804 and the SCell #2 806, respectively. On the other hand, when the bitB₁ is set to the second value, the UE may not perform the dormantoperation on all SCell(s) in the corresponding dormancy cell group #1810. In this situation, the UE may determine that the second BWP #2A andthe second BWP #2B are active BWPs on the SCell #1 804 and the SCell #2806, respectively.

It is noted that the first BWPs (e.g., the first BWP #1A, the first BWP#1B, and the first BWP #1C) indicated by the second RRC configurationmay have the same BWP index or have different BWP indexes from eachother. The second BWPs (e.g., the second BWP #2A, the second BWP #2B,and the second BWP #2C) indicated by the third RRC configuration mayhave the same BWP index or have different BWP indexes from each other.

The following disclosure may be used to further elaborate the term,example, embodiment, action, and/or operation mentioned above:

UE: The UE may be referred to as a PHY/MAC/RLC/PDCP/SDAP entity. ThePHY/MAC/RLC/PDCP/SDAP entity may be referred to the UE.

NW: The NW may be an NW node, a TRP, a cell (e.g., SpCell, PCell,PSCell, and/or SCell), an eNB, a gNB, and/or a base station.

PDCCH occasion: A time duration (e.g., one or a consecutive number ofslots/symbols/subframes) during which the MAC entity is configured tomonitor the PDCCH.

PSS monitoring occasion: The monitoring occasion(s) of the PSS outsidethe active time is “indicated” to the UE by the gNB with an offsetbefore or at the DRX ON.

Serving Cell: A PCell, a PSCell, or an SCell. The serving cell may be anactivated or a deactivated serving cell.

SpCell: For Dual Connectivity operation, the term Special Cell refers tothe PCell of the MCG or the PSCell of the SCG depending upon if the MACentity is associated to the MCG or the SCG, respectively. Otherwise, theterm Special Cell refers to the PCell. A Special Cell supports PUCCHtransmission and contention-based RA, and is always activated.

PSS: The PSS may refer to a WUS, PDCCH-WUS, PDCCH-skipping, and/orgo-to-sleep signaling. The PSS may be scrambled by a specific RNTI(e.g., PS-RNTI). The PSS may include one or more than one of thefollowing information: Power saving technique associated with C-DRX(e.g., wake up and/or to go to sleep), cross-slot scheduling, triggeringRS transmission, CSI report, single/multi-cell operation, BWPinformation (e.g., BWP ID), SCell information (e.g., SCell ID), MIMOlayer adaptation (e.g., the maximum number of MIMO layer), the number ofantennas, an indication of CORESET/search space/candidate of subsequentPDCCH decoding, PDCCH monitoring periodicity, PDCCH skipping, skipping anumber of DRX monitoring occasions, SPS activation, DRX configuration,DRX cycle, etc. The monitoring occasion of PSS may be “indicated” to theUE by the NW with an offset before and or at the beginning (e.g., startsymbol/slot/subframe) of DRX ON duration. The “indicated” may imply theexplicit signaling by higher layer signaling or implicit through theCORESET/search space. For example, the NW may configure an offset to theUE. The NW may configure a specific CORESET and/or search space for PSS.The NW may configure a specific period for PSS, e.g., the period may beassociated with the period of the DRX cycle. The UE may monitor the PSSon the offset before and or at the beginning (e.g., startsymbol/slot/subframe) of DRX ON duration on the specific CORESET and/orsearch space.

WUS: The WUS may have a field to indicate the UE needs to wake up or notwake up. Alternatively, the WUS may not have a field to indicate the UEneeds to wake up or not wakeup. When the UE receives the WUS (e.g., on aWUS/PSS monitoring occasion) may imply the NW indicates to the UE towake up (e.g., to monitor the PDCCH on the following DRX On-duration(e.g., to start the drx-onDuration Timer at the beginning of thesubsequent DRX cycle)). When the UE does not receive the WUS on a PSSmonitoring occasion, it may imply the NW indicates to the UE to not wakeup (e.g., not to monitor the PDCCH on the following DRX On-duration(e.g., not to start the drx-onDurationTimer at the beginning of thesubsequent DRX cycle).

BWP switch: When the UE receives signaling (e.g., PSS), and thesignaling includes BWP information. If the BWP information is differentfrom the active (DL) BWP of the UE, the UE may perform a BWP switch tothe BWP indicated by the signaling. If the BWP information is the sameas the active (DL) BWP of the UE, the UE may not perform the BWP switch.

bwp-InactivityTimer: The UE may determine to start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer of a cell-based on whether the UE performs BWPswitch of the cell. If the UE performs a BWP switch of a cell, the UEmay start or restart the bwp-InactivityTimer of the cell. If the UE doesnot perform a BWP switch of a cell, the UE may not start or restart thebwp-InactivityTimer of the cell. The duration of bwp-InactivityTimer isin ms, after which the UE falls back to the default Bandwidth Part. Thevalue 0.5 ms is only applicable for carriers >6 GHz. When the NWreleases the timer configuration, the UE stops the bwp-InactivityTimerwithout switching to the default BWP.

The serving cell(s), on which the UE may perform a BWP switch, may beactivated. The serving cell(s), on which the UE may perform a BWPswitch, may be an activated serving cell(s). The UE may only switch BWPon the activated serving cell(s). The UE may not switch the BWP on thedeactivated serving cell(s).

More specifically, the serving cell(s) may be configured for PSS. If aserving cell(s) is not configured for PSS, the UE may not switch the BWPof that serving cell(s), e.g., even if the UE receives a PSS on anotherserving cell (e.g., SpCell).

If a UE is configured with CrossCarrierSchedulingConfig and indicatessupport of search space sharing through searchSpaceSharingCA-UL orthrough searchSpaceSharingCA-DL, then an indication for BWP switch mayapply to the serving cells sharing the same search space. On the otherhand, if the indication(s) for the BWP switch is received through thespecific search space, the targeted BWP ID may be shared as well.

It is noted that the BWP mentioned within the present disclosure may bea DL BWP or a UL BWP. In one example, once the UE is indicated witheither a DL/UL BWP switch for a serving cell, the UE should also switchthe active UL/DL BWP of the serving cell to the UL/DL BWP that has thesame BWP ID as that of the DL/UL BWP indicated by the BWP switch (e.g.,PSS).

FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of a node 900 for wirelesscommunication, in accordance with various aspects of the presentdisclosure. As illustrated in FIG. 9 , the node 900 may include atransceiver 906, a processor 908, a memory 902, one or more presentationcomponents 904, and at least one antenna 910. The node 900 may alsoinclude an RF spectrum band module, a BS communications module, anetwork communications module, and a system communications managementmodule, Input/Output (I/O) ports, I/O components, and a power supply(not explicitly illustrated in FIG. 9 ). Each of these components may bein communication with each other, directly or indirectly, over one ormore buses 924. In one implementation, the node 900 may be a UE or a BSthat performs various functions described herein, for example, withreference to FIGS. 1 through 8 .

The transceiver 906 having a transmitter 916 (e.g.,transmitting/transmission circuitry) and a receiver 918 (e.g.,receiving/reception circuitry) may be configured to transmit and/orreceive time and/or frequency resource partitioning information. In oneimplementation, the transceiver 906 may be configured to transmit indifferent types of subframes and slots, including, but not limited to,usable, non-usable and flexibly usable subframes and slot formats. Thetransceiver 906 may be configured to receive data and control channels.

The node 900 may include a variety of computer-readable media.Computer-readable media can be any available media that can be accessedby the node 900 and include both volatile (and non-volatile) media andremovable (and non-removable) media. By way of example, and notlimitation, computer-readable media may include computer storage mediaand communication media. Computer storage media may include bothvolatile (and/or non-volatile) and removable (and/or non-removable)media implemented according to any method or technology for storage ofinformation such as computer-readable instructions, data structures,program modules or data.

Computer storage media may include RAM, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory(or other memory technology), CD-ROM, Digital Versatile Disks (DVD) (orother optical disk storage), magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magneticdisk storage (or other magnetic storage devices), etc. Computer storagemedia do not include a propagated data signal. Communication media maytypically embody computer-readable instructions, data structures,program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal such as acarrier wave or other transport mechanisms and include any informationdelivery media. The term “modulated data signal” may mean a signal thathas one or more of its characteristics set or changed in such a manneras to encode information in the signal. By way of example, and notlimitation, communication media may include wired media such as a wirednetwork or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic,RF, infrared, and other wireless media. Combinations of any of the aboveshould also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

The memory 902 may include computer storage media in the form ofvolatile and/or non-volatile memory. The memory 902 may be removable,non-removable, or a combination thereof. For example, the memory 902 mayinclude solid-state memory, hard drives, optical-disc drives, etc. Asillustrated in FIG. 9 , the memory 902 may store computer-readableand/or computer-executable instructions 914 (e.g., software codes) thatare configured to, when executed, cause the processor 908 to performvarious functions described herein, for example, with reference to FIGS.1 through 8 . Alternatively, the instructions 914 may not be directlyexecutable by the processor 908 but may be configured to cause the node900 (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform various functionsdescribed herein.

The processor 908 (e.g., having processing circuitry) may include anintelligent hardware device, a Central Processing Unit (CPU), amicrocontroller, an ASIC, etc. The processor 908 may include memory. Theprocessor 908 may process the data 912 and the instructions 914 receivedfrom the memory 902, and information through the transceiver 906, thebaseband communications module, and/or the network communicationsmodule. The processor 908 may also process information to be sent to thetransceiver 906 for transmission through the antenna 910, to the networkcommunications module for transmission to a CN.

One or more presentation components 904 may present data indications toa person or other devices. Examples of presentation components 904 mayinclude a display device, speaker, printing component, vibratingcomponent, etc.

From the present disclosure, it is manifested that various techniquesmay be used for implementing the disclosed concepts without departingfrom the scope of those concepts. Moreover, while the concepts have beendisclosed with specific reference to specific implementations, a personof ordinary skill in the art would recognize that changes may be made inform and detail without departing from the scope of those concepts. Assuch, the described implementations are to be considered in all respectsas illustrative and not restrictive. It should also be understood thatthe present disclosure is not limited to the specific disclosedimplementations. Still, many rearrangements, modifications, andsubstitutions are possible without departing from the scope of thepresent disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for a User Equipment (UE) for performinga dormant operation, the method comprising: receiving, from a BaseStation (BS), a Radio Resource Control (RRC) configuration indicating aset of one or more dormancy cell groups, wherein a group of servingcells belongs to a specific dormancy cell group in the set of one ormore dormancy cell groups; receiving, from the BS, a signal including abitmap, each bit of the bitmap being associated with a respectivedormancy cell group in the set of one or more dormancy cell groups; andswitching, based on a bit in the bitmap that is associated with thespecific dormancy cell group, active Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) of allserving cells included in the group of serving cells to a dormant BWP orto a non-dormant BWP.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:performing the dormant operation on a specific serving cell included inthe group of serving cells in a case that the active BWP of the specificserving cell is the dormant BWP.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein thedormant operation includes: performing a Channel State Information (CSI)measurement; and forgoing monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel(PDCCH).
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the dormant operationincludes at least one of: performing Automatic Gain Control (AGC) for aspecific serving cell included in the group of serving cells, orperforming beam management for the specific serving cell.
 5. The methodof claim 1, further comprising: forgoing monitoring a Physical DownlinkControl Channel (PDCCH) on a specific serving cell included in the groupof serving cells in a case that the active BWP of the specific servingcell is the dormant BWP; and monitoring the PDCCH on the specificserving cell in a case that the active BWP of the specific serving cellis the non-dormant BWP.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal isreceived via Downlink Control Information (DCI) that is scrambled by aPower Saving-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (PS-RNTI).
 7. The methodof claim 1, wherein the signal further includes a wake-up indicator forstarting a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) On-duration timer(drx-onDurationTimer) at a beginning of a DRX cycle.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: receiving a configuration of aDiscontinuous Reception (DRX) operation from the BS.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: forgoing monitoring the signal on aPhysical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) monitoring occasion when theUE is in a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) active time, wherein the PDCCHmonitoring occasion is configured for the signal; and monitoring thesignal on the PDCCH monitoring occasion when the UE is not in the DRXactive time.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the active BWP of aspecific serving cell included in the group of serving cells is aDownlink (DL) BWP.
 11. A User Equipment (UE) for performing a dormantoperation, the UE comprising: transmitting and receiving circuitry; andat least one processor coupled to the transmitting and receivingcircuitry and configured to: receive, by the transmitting and receivingcircuitry, a Radio Resource Control (RRC) configuration indicating a setof one or more dormancy cell groups from a Base Station (BS), wherein agroup of serving cells belongs to a specific dormancy cell group in theset of one or more dormancy cell groups; receive, by the transmittingand receiving circuitry, a signal including a bitmap from the BS, eachbit of the bitmap being associated with a respective dormancy cell groupin the set of one or more dormancy cell groups; and switch, based on abit in the bitmap that is associated with the specific dormancy cellgroup, active Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) of all serving cells included inthe group of serving cells to a dormant BWP or to a non-dormant BWP. 12.The UE of claim 11, wherein the at least one processor is furtherconfigured to: perform the dormant operation on a specific serving cellincluded in the group of serving cells in a case that the active BWP ofthe specific serving cell is the dormant BWP.
 13. The UE of claim 11,wherein the dormant operation includes: performing a Channel StateInformation (CSI) measurement; and forgoing monitoring a PhysicalDownlink Control Channel (PDCCH).
 14. The UE of claim 11, wherein thedormant operation includes at least one of: performing Automatic GainControl (AGC) for a specific serving cell included in the group ofserving cells, or performing beam management for the specific servingcell.
 15. The UE of claim 11, wherein the at least one processor isfurther configured to: forgo monitoring a Physical Downlink ControlChannel (PDCCH) on a specific serving cell included in the group ofserving cells in a case that the active BWP of the specific serving cellis the dormant BWP; and monitor the PDCCH on the specific serving cellin a case that the active BWP of the specific serving cell is thenon-dormant BWP.
 16. The UE of claim 11, wherein the signal is receivedvia Downlink Control Information (DCI) that is scrambled by a PowerSaving-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (PS-RNTI).
 17. The UE of claim11, wherein the signal further includes a wake-up indicator for startinga Discontinuous Reception (DRX) On-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer)at a beginning of a DRX cycle.
 18. The UE of claim 11, wherein the atleast one processor is further configured to: receive, by thetransmitting and receiving circuitry, a configuration of a DiscontinuousReception (DRX) operation from the BS.
 19. The UE of claim 11, whereinthe at least one processor is further configured to: forgo monitoringthe signal on a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) monitoringoccasion when the UE is in a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) active time,wherein the PDCCH monitoring occasion is configured for the signal; andmonitor the signal on the PDCCH monitoring occasion when the UE is notin the DRX active time.
 20. The UE of claim 11, wherein the active BWPof a specific serving cell included in the group of serving cells is aDownlink (DL) BWP.